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Wiriing up 3-phase twist lock plug ??

9K views 6 replies 5 participants last post by  Albin 
#1 ·
I bought a large drill press that has a 3-phase motor for cheap( I love ebay ). Instead of swapping out the motor I bought a rotary 3-phase power converter for not so cheap. I did this so hopefully I can find more great deals on machinery with 3 phase motors. The drill press has a 4 prong twist lock connector so, I went and bought a matching female plug to wiring to the converter. The only bad part is that the instructions that came with the plug are so blurry I can't tell which wire needs to go where. So, is the on prong on the plug with the extra tab piece ground? I assume so but want to make sure. Then does it matter where any of the other three hot wires go? The converter has a ground, 2-blank wires and 1 red wire out. The red wire is the generated 3rd phase.

Thanks for the help,
Mike
 
#2 ·
You didn't mention the voltage Mike, but I'm sure you checked all that before you plunked down the cash for the phase converter.
The prong with the tab is the ground. If you look at the backside where you connect the wires it should have a green screw to identify the ground terminal. THe other 3 (X,Y,Z) each get a phase wire. They can be connected in any combination.
The first thing to check is direction of rotation when you power it up. If it's backwards you can just swap any two of the three phase wires at whatever point it is easiest to access them.

Jim
 
#4 ·
Any time you're wiring up a 3 phase motor: if it runs backwards you can reverse any two of the phases to make it run the correct direction. That's one of the first lessons you learn as an electrician (which I am definitely NOT). It's right after the lesson about not grabbing live wires and such.
 
#6 ·
Thanks for the help! I just got it all wired up and turned on last night! It kick arse and even spun the correct direction on the first try. I had to replace the plug and a couple old wires on the machine also. The male plug was the same twist lock type female plug I purchased at home depot but the fat prong was is the wrong position. BTW the drill press is a turner-warner 1100 made by rockwell and I got it for $60 on ebay. :grinpimp:

Mike
 
#7 ·
Do a google search on "Hubbell Devices". It should lead you to several a *.pdf file ("Section W") that will show the wiring diagram for every power connection used in the US (grounded/non-grounded, 2 phase, 3 phase, delta, wye, etc.). Very useful in communicating how to wire a welder plug end to a dryer receptable using an extension cord adapter.

Hope this helps.

Al
 
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